Narnia: A New Beginning
by KwiditchJunkie
Summary: Chapter 2 now up. Join Natalie and the rest of the gang as they encounter talking animals, hostile security guards, and mysterious lion roars. Are they going crazy? Maybe. You'll just have to find out in the next thrilling chapter!
1. Chapter 1

((Hey guys! Jane here, and I've got a new obsession! The Chronicles of Narnia! I just recently saw the movie and I fell in love with it all over again. Although I'm not uber Catholic, I still appreciate it as a great piece of literature! I was just reading the other day about my school district's banned books and this series was on it. I think book-banning is totally outrageous. It's like book-burning without the fire. Enough with my ranting and on to the story!))

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**Chapter ½: Behind every closed door…**

Behind every closed door is an opportunity or adventure just waiting to be discovered.

Anyone or anything can be behind a closed door. One just has to be willing to open it and see for his or herself. Anything can be behind a closed door. The boogieman. The dog waiting to come inside. A friendly neighbor over for afternoon tea. An average, ordinary bathroom. Or even a closet full of clothes.

The only thing you have to remember is to follow your feet and doors will open where there were no doors before…

**Chapter 1: Just the Beginning**

"Leonardo Da Vinci ees one of ze most famoos paintairs of 'iz age," the tour guide said in a thick French accent. She walked backwards as the rest of the 10th grade class from Rosemont High School followed. They gazed astoundingly at all the paintings in the East Wing of the renowned museum The Louvre in Paris, France.

An attractive girl of about 16 years trailed behind the rest, tuning out the world on her headphones. Green Day pulsated through the ear buds of the iPod and drowned out the tour guides presentation. It wasn't that Natalie Brice was busy being a rude teenager, she probably knew about more about these paintings and their creators than the tour guide herself.

She tucked her hands in her hoodie pocket and gazed at one of her favorite pieces. She stopped in her tracks and moved towards it, letting her class disappear into the next gallery.

Natalie walked up close to the painting, with a small smile on her lips. "Madonna of the Rocks," she said, pulling an ear bud out of her ear. This Da Vinci painting wasn't what it looked like. It was originally painted with a much darker symbolism than today's version. The Catholic Church ordered Da Vinci to change the painting to fit their requirements.

Of course, Da Vinci didn't want to be killed, so he changed it. But the fact that his view on the Catholic religion was fascinating to Natalie.

She moved away from the painting and to the next. It was 'The Last Supper'; another one of Da Vinci's most famous.

There was a bench in front of the painting and Natalie took a seat. She could hear her classmates and teachers talking in the separate gallery, but instead she put her ear buds back in. She rested her elbows on her knees and cradled her chin as she closed her eyes and listened to her music.

Hopefully no one would forget about her.

And no one did forget about her.

Peering around the corner, a young man by the name of Chris Regal smiled at Natalie's figure, sitting on the bench alone. He was a handsome boy of about 16 as well. Chris and Natalie were in the same class together at Rosemont High in Manchester.

Although the two had no idea how the other felt, they both had a crush on each other for quite a while.

Chris's father, Jeff Maxwell, was the curator for the very celebrated museum that the high school was visiting. Although Chris grew up in England, his father would hardly ever come home. He was too busy with business at the museum to take time out of his demanding schedule to take a holiday with his family.

Finally, four years previous, Chris's father left his mother for good.

He had felt a great disliking to his father ever since he had left. Chris knew that work shouldn't control one's life, but never dared to tell his father likewise.

Taking a deep sigh, Chris approached Natalie.

He could hear the distant muffle of the song as he drew closer. Bending over, he crept his head ever so closer over Natalie's shoulder, almost as if listening to the music as well.

"You'll go deaf if you listen to any more of that music," he said, grinning.

Natalie shot up like a rocket into the sky and pulled out her ear buds. "I didn't mean to day dream! I was only sitting and admi—" Natalie realized who it was. "Chris! Cheese and rice, you nearly gave me a heart attack! Won't you be like a normal person and call me by my name instead of scaring the bloody crap out of me?"

Natalie playfully hit him in the arm and put her iPod away.

"How long were you standing there?" she asked.

"Not really long at all. Just wanted to make sure you weren't kidnapped or anything," he said, shrugging.

"I see,…" said Natalie, feeling awkward. There was a long pause when no one said anything. But Natalie soon drew the attention back to the paintings.

"Da Vinci… brilliant guy, eh?" she asked, walking down the gallery and Chris followed.

He agreed and then there was silence once more.

Before long, the two found themselves standing in front of an enormous mosaic. It was large enough to take up the entire wall.

It was Jacques-Louis David's painting titled 'Napoleon's Coronation.' It portrayed Napoleon, standing on an alter with a crown in his hands. Napoleon was so spiteful that he apparently pushed the Pope out of the way, grabbed the crown and named himself Emperor of France.

Natalie smirked up at the painting, "Slimey git… His head was probably too big to fit in that thing."

Chris laughed and pretty soon Natalie laughed as well. Eventually, the two were laughing about nothing at all.

"Chris m'boy!" said a booming voice from behind them.

They both stopped laughing and turned around. Standing before them was a handsome man with dark black hair. His build was muscular and his height towered over Natalie who felt some sort of dislike radiating Chris as the man drew nearer.

'_Who is this man? How does he know Chris?'_ Thought Natalie.

"And you must be—" the man said, curiously to her.

"Oh. Um… Natalie. Natalie Brice."

"Well, Ms. Brice, it is a pleasure to meet you. I am Jeff Maxwell, curator to the museum," he said proudly as he shook her hand firmly.

Now, if you read carefully at the beginning of this chapter, you might remember who this guy might be. But if you don't… you've got the attention span of Ralph Wiggum from The Simpsons. For shame!

'_Bloody kneecaps! The curator!... He doesn't sound French nor British. Is he American?'_ Natalie thought, as she smiled at the man.

"Chris! Why don't you show Ms. Brice around the museum?" he said, jovially.

"Isn't that what our class is here for on our school field trip?" Chris replied.

"How do you know each other?" asked Natalie.

"Well, I didn't expect you to keep me a secret from Ms. Brice! I would have thought that conversation would come up sooner or later," Mr. Maxwell said, messing up Chris's hair as he gave him a noogie.

Chris scowled and turned away.

"I am Chris's father," Mr. Maxwell said, ignoring his son.

Natalie's eyes grew wide with curiosity and stared at Chris. "You never told me your father was the curator to the museum!"

"Must've slipped my mind," he mumbled in reply.

"Right!" he said, beaming at the two. "Well, then. I suggest you two find your classmates! The Louvre is mighty big and you wouldn't want to get lost now."

The three walked back through the galleries, Chris hanging in the back of the group while Natalie was being kindly interrogated by his father.

She wanted to slip away for a bit and ask Chris what was bothering him. But Mr. Maxwell held her so close to his hip in verbose ramblings, she couldn't leave. She politely nodded and agreed with whatever he said.

To Natalie's relief, they caught up with the rest of the class. Mrs. Powell, the teacher, turned around and shrieked, "There you two are! We thought you had gotten lost!"

"Don't worry, Mrs. Powell," Mr. Maxwell said, outstretching his arms. Natalie backed away and stood next to Chris as they rejoined the class. "I found them safe and sound."

'_I thought he forgot about my class field trip…'_ Chris thought, looking anywhere but at his father.

"Class, this is Mr. Maxwell, the curator for the museum. It's such a surprise for him to visit with us today!" Mrs. Powell introduced, beaming.

While the class asked Mr. Maxwell questions about the paintings, Natalie mumbled to Chris, "What's with you and your dad?"

"We're not exactly on the best of speaking terms," Chris replied, growing red in the ears.

Natalie stared at him, a feeling of compassion towards him. She'd never known how dreadful it would be to have separated parents.

"Natalie! Where did you go?" came a voice from next to her.

She turned and saw two of her other best friends, Brianna Benjamin and James Abbott.

Brianna was tall, skinny, and wore glasses. She usually wore an eclectic array of clothing that gave her a kind of artsy style and she was always smiling. Her black hair was tied up in a knot with a clip.

She is the president of the school's Art Club and a vegetarian.

James was tall and built like an athlete like Natalie, but refused to play a team sport. He found them "too overrated" and "unworthy of his time." Natalie would always tease him about his stubbornness but he'd playfully tease her just the same about being a "bloody foot fairy." In other words, a soccer player. (Natalie was captain of her high school team.)

Most girls drooled over him and his bad boy façade but he really liked Brianna the most. Adding to his popularity, he was also the drummer for a local garage band and played often at school pep rallies and local cafes.

Although most think that he looks like a punk rocker, he's really a nice guy. One just has to be willing to get to know him.

And that's just what Natalie and Chris did.

"Were the two lovebirds captivated in a passionate display of love?" James said, draping his arms over the two.

"Wh-What! No! HAHAH! NOT AT ALL!" Natalie said, loudly.

Brianna rushed over and clamped her hand over Natalie's mouth. "Shh…"

Chris used his index and middle finger and pressed firmly on James's forehead. He pushed it backward and James smiled deviously.

"Don't say that," Chris said, turning the other way.

"Aww… Chrisy-poo! Has ickle-Jamie-kins gotten on your nerves?" James mocked.

Chris had to smile at this and completely forgot why he had been angry only a few minutes before. But that memory had been brought back to him at that very moment.

"Come to think of it, Mrs. Powell. I was wondering if I could steal Ms. Brice and Chris for a few minutes. I'd like to give them a personal tour," Mr. Maxwell said. The rest of the class had wandered away and ventured further into the gallery.

Chris looked somewhat annoyed at this and his father added, "And your other two friends may come as well. I have a special surprise for you."

'_Yippie,'_ Chris thought, scowling.

"Ooh! A personal tour! That would be fantastic!" Brianna said, her grin shining.

Natalie half-smiled, knowing how Chris would feel about it, and agreed as well.

James nodded resolutely and rested his arm over Brianna's shoulder.

"Right!" said Mr. Maxwell, gently shoving the foursome back the way that Natalie and Chris had come earlier. Before Mrs. Powell could protest, they disappeared from view.

'_I wonder where he's taking them,'_ Mrs. Powell thought, but soon enough her attention was drawn back to the class.

* * *

Now we must part from our world for a moment and journey to the mystical place known as Narnia.

On a pavilion seated atop a great hill looking over a large valley in a picturesque sunrise was a lone lion with a great, shaggy mane. His kind and yet fierce eyes traced the clouds approaching from the east. Their orange and reddish tinge warned of oncoming and ominous events.

"Sir," said a large, male centaur as he walked up quietly behind him. "Is there something wrong?"

The great lion turned his head and said, in barely a whisper, "It is time once again for the Sons and Daughters of Adam and Eve to voyage to our land. The enemy is on the move."

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((Yay! This is gonna be fun! Alright, I give credit to my friend Chris for the plot and one of the characters. And for everyone who's read all of the books, don't worry. I know what I'm doing. I know how it ends and I've got this all figured out. Hope to see you all in chapter 2!)) 


	2. Chapter 2

Hiya everyone! I'm back ready to bring you another exciting chapter of my Narnia fanfic. Sorry for my temporary hiatus. I don't post for a while because I had to sit on my ideas for a while. Not to mention the fact that I've been conditioning for soccer conditioning for the past three weeks... But anyway, I've been going through a MAJOR writer's block stage. Please forgive.

Like you guys care about this anyway... back to the fanfic!

(Cue for everyone to shout: "Yes! Get on with it!")

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Chapter 2: Go Back While You Still Can 

"Where's he taking us?" asked Bri, leaning in to Chris and Natalie.

They both replied with a shrug of the shoulders when suddenly Mr. Maxwell boomed, "Children--"

'_A little old to be called children,' _Chris glared.

"Now, I have some very important artifacts that I'd love to show you. First, we've got my private collection of--"

But he was cut off by a small ringing in his back pocket. He paused and quickly grabbed his cell phone. "Excuse me a minute," he said, smiling.

Briskly walking away, the group could hear him answering sharply. "What is it now? I told you not to ca--..."

There was a break.

"Handle the situation yoursel--"

Another pause.

From what the 'children' saw, Mr. Maxwell's tense shoulders suddenly relaxed. His ringed hand holding the phone up to his ear was visibly shaking.

"Are-- Are you sure you've found it? The machine is ready!" he whispered, barely audible.

After a reply from the other end, Mr. Maxwell looked over his shoulder at the four teenagers and sidled away into a separate room; out of sight and out of earshot.

"What was all that about?" asked James, raising an eyebrow.

"Probably excavating a new dig site..." Chris said, turning his back to the direction his father had just left. "Maybe he found some sort of priceless Etruscan snood."

"Snood?" Natalie asked, cocking her head to the side.

Chris paused, then smiled. He turned to Nat and said, shaking his head, "Forget it."

"Listen, let's go explore by ourselves," Chris continued, turning again to the long hall in front of them. "Anything to get away from _that_ looney," he added, muttering.

But as if his prayers were heard, his father came around the bend once more. He was sweating slightly and had a strange look in his eyes. A similar look of someone who had just won the lotto.

"Sorry, kids. But I'm going to have to leave you. Important business. Can't be missed," he said, walking briskly over to Chris and giving him a noogie once more.

Chris pushed his hand away and his dad said, "You know how it is, urgent call--"

"Yeah... just like old times," he said, watching his dad leave.

"It was nice to meet all of you!" he said, disappearing around a corner.

"As well as you, sir!" Natalie called back, being polite.

Once his rapid footsteps diminished, Chris said, "Let's go."

The rest agreed and followed him.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in Narnia...

"Sir,... we've tried contacting Witherwillow, but no such luck. It seems he has disappeared from Narnia," Seyonne said. "He was supposed to meet a group of dwarves with a message but never returned. We've searched everywhere for him."

Aslan didn't say anything at first and instead turned to face the centaur.

"Seyonne," said the great Aslan. "You might want to cover your ears..."

Seyonne quickly did so and stepped back.

At that, Aslan straightened and raised his noble head into the air and let out a tumultuous roar. It echoed throughout the land; rebounding off the trees, rivers and fields. It carried itself through the mountains and through the forests.

Aslan released a second follow up and let it echo over the water of the ocean below him.

The roar left Aslan's mouth and he returned to his peaceful state.

Seyonne uncovered his ears and said, "Are they coming, sir?"

"We shall find out soon enough..." Aslan replied, turning and walking back down the slope.

"And we mustn't worry about Witherwillow. He's loyal to us. He's probably lost his way, knowing the chatterbox."

* * *

Chris led them through the numerous corridors of ancient furniture and art. He pointed out all of the famous and not-so-famous artists and painters as well as their artwork.

"This painting is of St. George Fighting the Dragon... hence the title, by Raphael Sanzio. It was made in 1505--"

Suddenly, Chris was interrupted by a strange noise unfamiliar to his ears, only on the television.

It was the roar of a lion. Distant, but distinct.

"What was that?" Bri asked, jumping away from a statue of the Venus De Milo.

"I-- I don't know..." Natalie said, looking to the ceiling. She strained herself to hear the noise again but couldn't.

Suddenly, a second roar followed the first and the others tensed up. The noise was frightful but strangely enough it gave them a mysterious feeling of hope and courage. As if they'd be frightened and terrified of whatever the noise was created from.

Chris's eyebrows furrowed and James stared at the paintings. Bri squirmed, looking wildly around herself.

"I wonder if that was an alarm or something..." James said.

"Don't be stupid," Bri said, her voice squeaking.

"I'm not! That was a legit speculation for your information Ms. Mona Littlemore," James retorted.

Bri stuck out her tongue at him and Chris said, "Shut up, you two."

Natalie closed her eyes and took a deep breath. That sound. What was that sound?

'_That was a lion, obviously. But a lion... in the Louvre... That makes no sense at all.' _Natalie thought. _'But we're never going to find out if we don't investigate.'_

Natalie opened her eyes and looked around. Behind them, there was a door squished in between two larger paintings. If there weren't large red letters on the door saying "Authorized Personelle" it would have been completely missed.

Natalie back tracked and jogged over to the door. "It sounds like it came from here," she said, honestly.

"But Na-aat! We're not supposed to go in there!" Bri pleaded.

"Aw come on, Bri! I know you want to know what that noise was as much as I do!" Nat said, resting her hand on the metal push bar.

Bri bit her lower lip and wrung her hands. She let out an exasperated sigh, "Augh,... you guys are going to get us into so much trouble..."

"Lighten up, Bri," James said, grinning, "What's the worst that could happen?"

"I could name a few things right now..." Bri muttered, following the first three.

The metal door shut with a _clang!_ behind them; leaving their view in complete darkness.

Bri grasped onto James's arm and stared wide eyed ahead. James blushed and was thankful for the darkness.

Shadows could only be seen to determine who was where.

"Oof... James, that was my foot," Chris said, his voice echoing down the corridor.

"It wasn't my fault! Bri knocked into me!" James said, louder.

"I did not!" Bri squeaked.

"Shut up!" Natalie hissed, looking ahead of them, "We'll be caught if you don't."

Just in their line of vision, they could see a break of golden light illuminating from a door and overflowing into the hall.

The four pressed against the wall when they heard urgent voices from inside. It was lucky that their position hadn't been noticed at that moment.

Chris pushed the others against the wall further with his arm as two men rushed out of the room and in the opposite direction of the group.

Everyone held their breath as the two men talked to each other in raspy voices, "But if it's true! I mean... all the stories! The legends! It's just..."

"Impossible. I know," said the other. "But we must get down to the main room. Mr. Maxwell wants the full report. The creature should be safe in there for now."

Chris stepped forward cautiously and peeked around the door frame. His eyes were illuminated by the light and Natalie saw them grow wide and then narrow with curiosity.

She too stepped out from behind him and looked over his shoulder.

Before them, they could see an enormous room. A room that was obviously some sort of laboratory. Lining the walls were numerous doors. Doors of every kind; metal, wooden, glass. Also of every color and texture.

"What the--" Natalie said, stepping into the empty room.

"Natalie, wait--" Chris said, trying to grab her arm, but missed.

"Curious..." she said, approaching a door and touching it with her hand.

Bri groaned and chased after her, "Nat, we shouldn't be here. We should go. What if those men come back?"

Chris and James followed the other two. Bri backed away and stood in the middle of the room, avoiding to touch anything. James and Chris, on the other hand, began opening each door and finding that there was a solid wall on the other side.

Natalie walked down the row of doors and then back again towards the entrance they had come through. On the wall beside their original entrance was a counter of kitchen appliances, a desk and two unmade beds.

On the stove was a kettle of water, boiling for tea. Obviously, people were living here. But this place was a very odd place to be living, let alone this was a very odd place to begin with.

"Hey! Look at this!" James said urgently from the far side of the room.

Naturally, the rest followed and saw to their horror another room. But this room was definitely different than the previous.

It was much darker and melancholy, with a peculiar smell of pine surrounding them. The lab contained several counters littered with vials and boiling cylinders with a curious purple liquid contained inside.

"I don't like this... I don't like this at all," Bri said, backing away from a row of needles filled with an odd and unfamiliar clear liquid.

There were strange tables with hand and ankle latches connected to them. Large bright lights hung over top of them. It was almost as if the four had walked into a weird Sci-Fi operating room.

"You guys, we need to leave. Now," Bri said, getting uneasy.

Suddenly, fluttering wings could be heard smacking against a metal cage. The four jumped and whipped around to look at the thing that had made the noise.

It was a small yellow finch with a metal wire wrapped around it's beak. It fluttered helplessly in the cage, trying to escape. It was the only animal on the premises although a number of cages surrounded it.

The bird itself didn't look too healthy. It was missing patches of feathers on it's wings and body.

The first over to the creature was Bri. She was such an animal lover.

"Oh no! The poor thing!" she cried. Immediately, she flung the cage open and untied it's beak.

"Bri! Stop! He's not ours! That's someone's bird. We can't just set it free," he said, standing next to her.

"Nonsense," she said, tears in her eyes. "How could they be so cruel! Hurting a defenseless animal..."

But once she took the copper wire from it's beak, there was a surprise for everyone standing in that room.

The bird began to talk. And quickly, at that.

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! My dear lady! Thank you! You saved me! You saved me!" it cried.

Bri's visage of sympathy turned into one of surprise faster than you can say pig. Her mouth dropped, as well as everyone else's.

But the bird paid no heed and kept blabbering on and on.

Natalie, Chris and James all took one look at the talking creature and all screamed in unison, their eyes wide with horror.

The bird flew out of Bri's hand and hovered above the rest, fluttering it's wings. "My dear friends! Why must you shout?"

But this made them all scream louder.

Bri, getting the picture, quickly came over and stood in front of them. They stopped screaming and instead stared up at the shocking sight.

"Why... How is it that you can talk?" Natalie stammered.

"Well,... that's how we all are in Narnia," the bird admitted happily. "Then again, my second cousin Willie was never much of a talker. Of course, my mother always told me that silence is golden--"

The bird continued to chat on and on and James leaned in to the others asking rhetorically, "Is it just me, or are animals like this one much better off not talking..."

"Narnia?" asked Chris.

"Yes! Narnia! And this is no place in Narnia that I've ever seen," the bird said, looking around himself.

"Err..." Nat started, "You're in Paris... France."

"Pair iss?" The bird asked, cocking it's head to the side curiously.

"Yes, Paris," Bri said.

"Strange," the bird said.

"Listen," Chris said, "We should probably go now..." he backed out, pulling Nat's and James's shirts.

"No wait!" the bird said, swooping in front of his nose. "You must help me get back to Narnia! I have an urgent message to deliver to the dwarves, then to Aslan!"

"Ehh..." Chris said, walking backward. He was unsure about what to say to a talking animal. None the less, one that wouldn't keep quiet.

But no sooner had those words left his lips, four security guards stepped into the room from the hall.

Everyone froze.

The guards stared at the four kids and, almost as one, pulled out their guns. _"Arrêtez!"_ they said in French. These guys did not look friendly at all. In fact, anyone wouldn't look friendly if they were pointing the barrel of a gun at your face. Although they couldn't understand them, the teens figured that they were not happy.

Instinctively, the four kids raised their hands above their head.

The bird flittered around their heads.

"_Obtenez sur le sol maintenant!"_ one shouted.

Bri stepped forward and said, strangely defiantly, "You are cruel human beings! How could you do such a thing to a helpless animal! It's inhumane! Ghastly! Malevolent--"

The nearest guard grew tired of her yelling and promptly hit her across the face with the back of his hand, _"Silence."_

"Bri!" James and Chris shouted, jumping forward and catching her as she fell backwards. She clutched her cheek and tears poured down her cheeks.

Natalie grew furious. It would have been easy enough to just listen to what they were saying; but then again, they just hurt one of her best friends.

Natalie's eyes darted over to the counter she had noticed before and saw the kettle. It began whistling as the steam shot out of the openings. The noise was the only sound heard except for the heavy breathing of our heroes.

She looked at the guards again and then back at the kettle.

One particular guard, a beefy man with a thick neck, stepped forward and said, _"Vous n'êtes pas autorisé d'être ici. Obtenir sur le sol ou nous tirerons."_

Natalie looked over to the kettle which was only an arm's length away.

The man saw where she was looking and surprisingly or not, pulled the trigger to his hand gun.

Natalie lunged toward the kettle as the bullet whizzed past her left leg.

She grabbed the kettle and flung it towards the men. The top fell off at the hot water poured all over them. They screamed in pain as the boiling water splattered on their face and torso.

"RUN!" Natalie shouted, pushing a guard aside.

James and Chris helped Bri to her feet as Natalie kicked one of them in his 'sensitive parts'.

The four kids ran into the hall and ducked as gunshots echoed through the hallway. The talking bird flew overhead, leading them to an unknown destination.

But what was for certain, their lives would be forever changed from that moment on.

* * *

Review please! You don't know how important it is for me to get some helpful critics who can give me advice on what I need to do to improve. P.S. The French in the story is not totally accurate. Although I've been learning the language for a while, I forgot my book at school so please bare with the computer translation of English phrases.

Hopefully I'll see you all in Chapter 3!


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